Garland
"An auric heart for a pedestal marred in blood." —Somnium Fluxus Garland (ンヅヅラガン, Garurandu) Is a young Missionary of Diluculum Aeternus and the current Captain of the Twelfth Division of the Gotei 13. Famed as the only child of the nefarious Randa Primarosa, Garland is sought after by her mother's enemies for her dormant power along with widespread fear that she may one day prove a catastrophic threat for both physical and spiritual realms. Garland was named by Randa in honor of her grandfather, her only relative she truly loved. Although widely believed as Randa's biological daughter, Garland is in fact an effigy of Adjudicator Ajoris, synthesized by Randa's essence along with a portion of Ajoris' soul siphoned by Randa during the climax of their last confrontation. Garland and Ajoris form a spiritual pair as designed by Randa, meaning their fates are inextricably linked. Deeming Ajoris virtually impossible to kill directly, Randa designed Garland as her protection from Ajoris and a failsafe to be used by Diluculum Aeternus in the case she were to die before stopping Ajoris personally. Nevertheless, Randa refrained from immediately killing Garland for reasons unknown and abandoned her to Diluculum Aeternus at an early age. Garland was adopted into the organization only after much debate as to whether she should be killed or allowed to live. Although Garland spent much of her life in the relative safety of the covenant, its leaders, Ichchha-un-Idika Edha Guha Thakurta and Eriphyla, grew wary of Soul Society's impending threats along with the danger Garland's presence posed upon the covenant's membership and Garland herself. Once Garland had grown sufficiently powerful, the covenant organized an alliance with the Gotei 13, agreeing to provide them with a single member who would represent the covenant's good faith and aid the Gotei 13 as a regular officer. This was in fact a pretence that would likely succeed in protecting Garland and her allies from the more radical Sagi cults along with the wrath of her own mother. At present, very few Sagi outside of Diluculum Aeternus are aware of Garland's existence. As a representative of Diluculum Aeternus, Garland spent her time within the First Division until she was suddenly granted the position of Twelfth Division Captain, owing to the Gotei 13's lack of any suitable scientist for the position with Izumi Ōmura assigned as her Lieutenant. Despite her initial chagrin, Garland quickly adapted to her new responsibilities and eventually earned the respect of most in her division, despite her youth. Appearance Personality As a child raised in isolation, oblivious to her own significance, Garland adopted an insatiable curiosity of the world outside of Diluculum Aeternus. An introvert at an early age, Garland interacted with her peers only when necessary and spent most of her time studying within the seclusion of her own room. Garland would only adopt a more open demeanor when in the presence of Ichhcha, whom she particularly respected for having devoted much of her time in raising her. Although Garland maintains a grudge against authority, her childhood curiosities led her to adopt the more gregarious lifestyle of a friendly thrill-seeker and innocuous prankster, much at odds with the wishes of her caregivers. History Inventions Claves Iudicis (クラベスイデクス, Latin for "Keys of the Judge"):''' Powers and Abilities Garland is noted to be an exceptionally gifted entity for her age, drawing comparisons between her and Randa on more than one occasion. Although not largely powerful compared to Diluculum Aeternus' senior members, Garland's brilliant mind and capacity to grow has made her into one of the organization's most valued associates. Given Eriphyla's observations and Agostinha's interest in Garland, she is likely to possess some form of dormant power. Natural Abilities '''Unfounded Growth Rate: Eriphyla has noted that, despite of her unwillingness to train, Garland seems to be innately capable of accessing progressive amounts her dormant potential at an unprecedented rate. Despite having awakened her divine powers within mere weeks before joining the Gotei 13, Garland was promptly deemed fit for the position of Lieutenant. Eriphyla states that is no question that Garland will surpass Randa and perhaps even rival Ajoris in the foreseeable future, provided she is tutored properly. Immortality: '''Having apparently inherited some fragment of Agostinha's power from Randa, Garland, much like her mother, cannot die of natural causes; as such, she does not require sustenance or sleep to survive. Although Garland has yet to cease aging and can still be killed, her body is noted to be capable of regenerating from anything that does not instantly kill her. Upon sustaining a normally fatal injury, Garland will simply be rendered unconscious until her body has automatically restored itself. As Randa has never demonstrated self-regeneration to such an extent, it can be said that Garland is already closer to achieving absolute invulnerability; although it cannot be said for certain how long before this occurs. '''Immense Spiritual Power: Garland possesses extraordinary spiritual power around the level of a Captain, allowing her to utilize the power of Iudux Numinum for a fair period of time without tiring. Upon release, her Reiatsu is noted to produce a resonant hum and is crimson in colouration. Genius-Level Intellect: Garland, having apparently inherited Agostinha's wisdom from Randa, along with some of Ajoris' knowledge amassed through over hundreds of centuries, Garland possesses far more intellect than one would normally think possible of a woman of her age. According to Eriphyla, while Garland may appear undisciplined or incompetent at first glance, her brilliance shines when she is unwillingly challenged or assigned important responsibilities. When acting alone and fully committed to her own obligations, Garland is capable of elaborately planning her actions months in advance, accurately predicting the movements of hundreds of individuals who will either serve as assets or hindrances. By extension, Garland's method of intelligence gathering from friends and foes alike is succinct and virtually unnoticeable, employing the use of clever wordplay and thorough attention to the most minute details of gestures and facial motions. It has been suggested that her usual lackadaisical behaviour is actually a ploy to undermine her own knowledge and more easily garner trust from others. When acting as a leader, Garland is capable of single-handedly assigning and recalling elaborate orders to hundreds of associates at a time, and taking full advantage of their individual talents when working alongside them. She is hailed as an innovator who can find use in whatever she is given, regardless of its insignificance, with remarkable results. *'Wealth of Knowledge:' As the effigy of an entity having lived over 30 millennia, Garland has inherited knowledge pertaining to countless eras of both spiritual and physical realms, an invaluable aid in her pursuits of science and strategy. *'Enhanced Eidetic and Echoic Memory: '''Garland has repeatedly been shown during her time in the Twelfth Division to possess extraordinary active memory, capable of recalling numerous complex sequences and comfortably micromanaging the activities of herself and her subordinates at the same time. *'Master Strategist and Tactician:' As Garland is not overly powerful compared to her fellow Captains, she relies primary on strategy on victory; Garland's extensive skill and knowledge of her own abilities allows her to defeat and sometimes even dominate stronger opponents with unorthodox methods of application and contingencies for virtually every move her opponent can possibly make, even with limited knowledge of their abilities. Nevertheless, Garland prefers to only engage opponents she is reasonably knowledgeable of, otherwise avoiding them outright if possible. This, along with Garland's awareness of her own limitations, ensures a nigh certain victory in any fight she participates in. *'Master Inventor and Innovator: Garland is famed throughout Diluculum Aeternus for having devised innovations of many Sagus inventions left unchanged for thousands of years within weeks of postulation, trial and error, despite not being a Sagus herself; including those of Glacies Fidus, who himself was hailed as a genius inventor in his human life. As Captain of the Twelfth Division, Garland has both innovated some of her predecessor's accomplishments and devised a few inventions of her own after mere months of obsessive study within the Shinigami Research and Development Institute. *'''Kidō Analysis: Despite her inability to learn Kidō or similar forms of magic, Garland has dedicated much of time in the Twelfth Division to understanding and researching such power to the best of her abilities, aided mainly by Kidō masters within the Gotei 13 and Sagus volunteers. Garland's subsequent knowledge in the field of magic of any sort allows her break down the most elaborate of spells to their smallest details and even acquire significant knowledge of its caster by studying its composition, such as their disposition, age, or exact level of proficiency with sorcery regardless of any attempt on their part to hold back the fullest extent of their abilities. *'Multilingualism: '''Garland claims to be capable of speaking over 3,000 different languages, another trait inherited from Ajoris. Hohō Mastery '''Shunpo Master:' Hakuda Expert General Hakuda Knowledge: Iudex Numinum Iudex Numinum ' (アイデックスニューミュラム, Latin for "Judge of Divine Powers") is a divine form of magic possessed only by Garland and her elder half. At birth, Ajoris was said to have merely possessed great power without form. It was upon the realization that her existence was unique that Ajoris considered herself the apotheosis of order and pondered the means of which such an entity could ensure balance. In doing so, she discovered that she could imprint her desires into the nature of her powers and effectively give them shape; in other words, all techniques falling under Iudex Numinum are the result of Ajoris' own interpretation of an ideal god. At some point during the process of shaping her abilities, Ajoris is said to have eventually considered an existence greater than her own, inadvertently giving birth to Agostinha and preventing her from shaping her abilities any further. Despite Ajoris' having lost the crux of her power to Agostinha prior to Garland's conception, the true power of Iudex Numinum remains as absolute as it was the moment of its completion; although Garland has only begun to tap into it, having awakened it shortly after her promotion to Captain. Although Garland's use of Iudex Numinum is generally inferior to Ajoris', she has adapted it in some regards to serve her own purposes, and thus possesses some techniques which Ajoris does not. *'Vicēs Augur '(バイシスオーグル, ''Latin for "Augur Shift"): A unique power that can manifest in various forms according to Garland's will, be it gaseous, liquid, solid, or plasmic. Even its temperature may be freely altered according to Garland's will and experience with the element. But however it is molded, its greyish coloration serves to distinguish it as a force of its own. Vicēs Augur is considered to be a lesser form of the Augur utilized by Ajoris. Identically, Vicēs Augur is Garland's primary means of offence and defence owing to its versatility.Augur does not carry the weaknesses of any element if shaped into such—if it is molded to resemble fire, it is inextinguishable by water, and if molded to resemble water, it cannot be evaporated or frozen. Regardless of its form, Augur will forever persist over the environment until Garland either dismisses it or depletes her Reiryoku. Although Augur is capable of burning, freezing, drowning, or even striking opponents if moulded into a solid object, the true damage it may inflict is of a more supernatural nature, for any enemy to come into contact with it will rapidly lose their own spiritual powers, regardless of their properties, until finally they die outright. Even should the enemy manage to escape Augur before they reach the point of their own annihilation, its effects are long-lived, severely weakening the enemy's abilities often for quite some time after the battle has already concluded. The spiritual damage inflicted by Augur cannot be forcibly undone by any known method; it will automatically disappear given enough time. Objects and living beings sufficiently coated with Augur can be converted into it, restoring some of Garland's Reiryoku. While Augur generated is this manner is not tied to Garland's Reiryoku reserves and thus can be made in excess, she can only control it with profound concentration; otherwise it will persist in its initial form, dissipating after a certain period of time has passed. Nevertheless, Augur's power is dependent upon the amount ''of the Reiryoku used to generate it; although Garland can drastically increase its power by utilizing more Reiryoku, this lowers the overall volume of Augur that can be conjured. As a result, Garland cannot often destroy powerful barriers or offensive Kidō spells with Augur alone unless she empowers it with massive amounts of Reiryoku. Utilizing the bare minimum of Augur and dedicating entirely to its offensive power can produce devastating results and almost instantly disable any opponent. Given enough time, Garland can freely change the form of her Augur whilst she has already released it, making it an incredibly deceptive weapon regardless of her own limitations with it. *'Solitudo Iudicis (ソリュチュードイデクス, Latin for "Solitude of the Judge"): A passive trait inherited by Ajoris, Solitudo Iudicis protects Garland's mind, past and future from change or corruption from an outside influence. Garland's thoughts, past and future cannot be read by techniques such as Randa's Sensus or even by Agostinha herself, and any direct alterations of her past or future with chronomancy or related abilities are immediately annulled as if they had never occurred. Because Solitudo Iudicis renders every future event concerning Garland unreadable, its protection partially extends to individuals who have recently interacted with her. *'Auris Iudicis' (オリスイデクス, Latin for "Ear of the Judge"): A passive trait, developed some time after Garland joined the Gotei 13, that grants the ability to pinpoint the location and read the thoughts of anyone thinking of her with great intent, regardless of where they may be. Auris Iudicis is derived from a power once possessed by Ajoris prior to the birth of Agostinha. No matter the number of individuals speaking or thinking of her all at once, Garland can freely observe all of them for as long as she concerns them. By extension, Auris Iudicis grants Garland a limited capacity to pinpoint and predict her opponents' actions, rendering her more difficult to surprise or blindside. Auris Iudicis also allows Garland to subconsciously enter the dreams of those who have thought of her at any point or simply speak to them telepathically. Garland has adapted her Auris Iudicis to allow her to establish a telepathic link between all individuals affected by the technique, granting her an efficient means of passing information, particularly when used in conjunction with Ōra Iudicis. Because Auris Iudicis cannot be deactivated at will, Garland states that it renders concentration impossible when a significant number of individuals are thinking of her at once; as such, she considers it more of a hindrance despite its benefits. *'Oculus Iudicis' (オクルスイデクス, Latin for "Eye of the Judge"): Another derivation of the all-seeing power her elder half once possessed, Oculus Iudicis allows Garland to oversee the world through any object that casts a reflection, such as a mirror or a crystal ball. Garland can choose to either manually navigate the world through the medium or allow it to automatically focus on an ongoing event she wishes to spectate. Garland has demonstrated that, unlike Ajoris, she is capable of recording events observed with Oculus Iudicis and replaying them at a later point, regardless of whether she uses the same medium or not, as well as detecting traces of Reiatsu within any area she monitors as if she were actually present. Unlike Ajoris, Garland cannot presently use this technique to expand the range within which she can conjure Augur. *'Audacia Iudicis' (アウダーチアイデクス, Latin for "Audacity of the Judge"): A unique form of defence derived from Ajoris' former power to unconsciously divert harm from her body, Audacia Iudicis allows Garland to actively redirect an object or attack she perceives as a threat away from her body by gesturing the direction she wishes the object to travel. The range within which objects can be influenced by Audacia Iudicis is a small radius around Garland, estimated by herself to extend around two metres and a half beyond the reach of her arms. Should a redirected object or attack extend beyond this radius, it will continue to travel in its new trajectory unless it possesses homing properties. If an object or attack is immovable or extends beyond the radius of Audacia Iudicis, Audacis Iudicis will cause it to bend around the radius rather than move it in its entirety. Unlike Ajoris, Garland can only move a target in a single direction at a time, meaning she cannot use this technique to split objects. Because Audacia Iudicis applies to solid objects and even individuals, Garland may use it offensively by disarming or throwing nearby opponents, using their own momentum against them. *'Manūs Iudicis' (マヌスイデクス, Latin for "Hands of the Judge"): An unusual technique manifested solely in Garland's hands, supposedly derived from Ajoris' former belief that no power was beyond her grasp. In accordance with such a concept, Manūs Iudicis allows Garland to grab physical or metaphysical substances in ways which would otherwise be impossible. Garland has mainly demonstrated Manūs Iudicis' power by performing feats such as "grabbing" Kidō spells and brandishing them as armaments such as swords and polearms. Even spiritual defences such as barriers can be grabbed and removed with the power of Manūs Iudicis, provided Garland is physically touching either the source or the barrier itself. Manūs Iudicis renders Garland's hands significantly more durable than the rest of her body, allowing her to grab energies that would otherwise fatally wound her. Garland may only utilize Manūs Iudicis with her hands, meaning that attempting to form a hold with her arms or legs, for example, would yield no supernatural effect. *'Furia Iudicis' (フリアイデクス, Latin for "Fury of the Judge"): A technique Garland regards as her "secret weapon" and most powerful attack. Considered the antithesis of Augur, a power which can assume any form, Furia Iudicis embodies destruction without form—in other words, its purest expression. True to such a concept, Furia Iudicis allows Garland to simply erase anything in her sight from existence without interacting with it in any way, regardless of its power or other properties. Because of its nature, Furia Iudicis can destroy even conceptual powers in their entirety regardless of whether or not their origin is within Garland's view. Nevertheless, Furia Iudicis possesses two major weaknesses which would compromise its usefulness in a battle against a capable opponent without the use of a distraction. Firstly, although no barrier or ward itself is capable of withstanding Furia Iudicis, such spiritual defences, regardless of how powerful or frail they might be, will always succeed in protecting everything contained within it from Furia Iudicis' effects before its inevitable destruction; in other words, destroying an opponent with Furia Iudicis requires that Garland first destroy any barrier or ward standing between her and the opponent. Secondly, using Furia Iudicis requires Garland to focus for nearly fifteen seconds, during which she must remain stationary; any conscious reaction to an opponent's action during this process will cause Furia Iudicis to fail. Because of her inexperience with Furia Iudicis, Garland describes it as very taxing to even attempt, and excessive use, regardless of whether it is successful or not, can inflict physical trauma to her body. Because of Furia Iudicis' drawbacks, Garland has only attempted to use it under the aid of her allies. Garland cannot use Furia and Oculus Iudicis alongside one another because the latter technique requires too much focus. **'Furia Minor' (フリアマイナー, Latin for "Lesser Fury"): A weaker variation of Furia Iudicis that utilizes whatever amount of vigour Garland has stored into Furia Iudicis and unleashes it immediately. Unlike Furia Iudicis, Furia Minor is not absolute—the damage it may inflict upon spells and living individuals, if any at all, is proportionate to the target's Reiatsu and the amount of time spent preparing Furia Iudicis. At its weakest, it may simply stun or halt the target. Proper use of Furia Minor requires some insight on Garland's part as to whether she will be interrupted while preparing Furia Iudicis or not, for clutch utilization may cause her to strike an unintended target. *'Ōra Iudicis' (オライデクス, Latin for "Mouths of the Judge"): A power manifested in Garland's speech, exemplifying the sacredness of god's voice. Among all of Iudux Numinum's divinations, Ōra Iudicis is the most abstract in terms of both capability and usage and the one Garland claims to have the least experience with. At Ōra Iudicis' most basic level, Garland's words cannot be heard or sensed in any way by unintended recipients, allowing her to speak privately to whomever she pleases without the use of telepathy offered by Auris Iudicis; alternatively, Garland can appear to onlookers to be saying something else, allowing for confusion and deception. Against weakened opponents who lack resolve against her, Garland can temporarily manipulate their actions through verbal commands. Ōra Iudicis is particularly valued by Garland within the S.R.D.I as it allows her to give individualized orders to multiple subordinates in the same instant. Relationships Izumi Ōmura Jaromira Dragan Randa Primarosa As Randa abandoned her at an early age, Garland has little personal knowledge of her biological mother. Although she pleasantly recalls her little time spent within her mother's care, Garland has come to recognize her as a threat to her companions as a result of the vague information provided by Diluculum Aeternus. Even so, Garland harbors no resentment for Randa and is curious as to what she seeks, although she laments the idea of personally encountering her as she is unsure of how such a meeting would unfold. Lin A. Privette Upon being temporarily placed in the care of the Privettes, Garland developed a close friendship with the head of the family despite the latter's rather secretive nature. Lin fully revealed her past to Garland once she came of age, coinciding with the latter's alliance with the Gotei 13. Garland has since then become particularly protective of Lin and now considers her a sibling. Ichchha-un-Idika Edha Guha Thakurta Garland clearly holds her godmother in high regard despite her few interactions with her in childhood. Although most of their more recent interactions have been largely practical, Garland hopes for a chance to further socialize with Ichchha once their business with the Gotei 13 is settled. Eriphyla Garland spent most of her childhood in the care of Eriphyla, who served as both her caregiver and trainer. Garland despised Eriphyla in childhood due to the latter's rather harsh training and signs of apathy. Garland and Eriphyla began to interact on somewhat more friendly terms once Garland came of age, although Garland still considers Eriphyla to be unusual and unnervingly devious, avoiding interaction with her whenever possible. Glacies Fidus Left unaware of Glacies' true nature as the lost founder of Diluculum Sanctus, Garland mainly considers him as little more than an object of her interest. While Garland has admitted to having difficulty taking Glacies seriously due to his canine appearance, she is impressed with his intellect and does seem more open to interacting with him compared to other officers outside of the Twelfth Division. Glacies' habit of ignoring Garland has done little to deter her; although she is well aware of his opinion of her, she insists on pestering him as both a way of enacting revenge and satisfying her curiosity. Quotes Trivia *Garland's name is a running gag among the members of her Division, who often initially believe Garland is male due to its masculinity. In worse cases, her full name is mispronounced as Garlic Dragon. Behind the Scenes *Images drawn by the author *Garland is inspired by the initial concept the author had for Randa regarding the latters abilities. Although Randa was intended to be a fairly weak combatant who relied purely on versatility and strategy, rather than overwhelming power, to win against her opponents, Randa eventually became much too powerful to fulfill this purpose. And thus, Garland is meant to take Randa's place as a primarily strategic fighter and possibly the author's main character.;\